SPORTS
Mooks boys basketball keeps it together in close win over Seaside PAGE A10
INSIDE
The Tokens appear in Tillamook Sunday, Feb. 2 PAGE A8
Headlight Herald WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 29, 2014
Arch Cape fires now controlled
Hatching an outcry
Local fishing community is alarmed over state conservation strategy
The larger one burned 273 acres By Joe Wrabek jwrabek@countrymedia.net
Officials say it will be another day or so before it’s known precisely what caused last week’s coastal wildfires. After four days of intense work, crews had controlled two fires that had been burning near the Arch Cape tunnel, said state officials. “We’re down to a handful of smokes,” said Oregon Department of Forestry spokesperson Ashley Lertora. “We made great progress.” Although the two fires are not yet officially contained — that announcement isn’t expected until later this week – they’re not expected to spread, the Headlight Herald was told. The fires near the southern border of Clatsop County have been turned over to the landowners to deal with, Lertora said. That would be Stimson Lumber for the Shingle fire, and Weyerhauser Co. for the Falcon Cove fire. No public land was burned. “The landowners will continue to have personnel and equipment there,” said Lertora. Both fires reportedly began in the remains of slash burns from logging operations conducted last fall. Extreme dry weather and high winds may have re-kindled the slash piles, although that has yet to be confirmed. The Shingle fire was reported first, the morning of Jan. 23. It was located 2 miles east of the Arch Cape tunnel on U.S. Highway 101. The Oregon Department of Forestry called in assistance after the Shingle fire began “spotting” toward the highway. Rural fire departments in Clatsop County and Nehalem, plus hand crews from the South Fork Inmate Camp in Tillamook County, ended up working on the fire along See FIRE, Page A3
INDEX Classified Ads.........................B5-8 Crossword Puzzle...................... B2 Fenceposts.............................B3-4 Letters........................................A4 Obituaries..................................A6 Opinions....................................A4 Sports.................................A10-12
LONGEST-RUNNING BUSINESS IN TILLAMOOK COUNTY SINCE 1888
VOL. 125, NO. 5 • $1.00
TILLAMOOK, OREGON • WWW.TILLAMOOKHEADLIGHTHERALD.COM
By Sayde Moser smoser@countrymedia.net
File Photo
Dave Manners, left, and Nick Laviolette proudly pose with their chinook salmon and winter steelhead caught on the Kilchis River.
More than 100 fishing enthusiasts attended an informational meeting last week in Tillamook, primarily to protest a draft conservation and management plan proposed by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. The state’s plan addresses six native coastal salmon and trout species, and outlines actions designed to sustain the species and to improve fishing overall. The executive summary can be found on the Headlight Herald’s website, tillamookheadlightherald.com.
In a nutshell, the plan would increase hatchery fish on the Trask and Nestucca rivers by ONLINE POLL 5 percent, Tell us your while rethoughts on ducing or ODFW’s proposal: eliminating tillamookheadlighthatchery herald.com fish on the Kilchis and Wilson rivers. The Kilchis and Wilson would be designated as conservation areas for native species. See FISHING, Page A7
Hurlimans have a winner Local couple’s racehorse nets $25,000 derby win By Sayde Moser smoser@countrymedia.net George and Rose Hurliman sit at the dining room table in their home at the end of Fawcett Creek Road in Tillamook. From their big bay windows, they can see miles of hill-covered trees and serene valleys. Herds of elk may meander from the creek to the grassy hills. The Hurlimans have lived in the house for more than three decades. For longer than that, they’ve been racing horses. Now, after winning the $25,000 Oregon Derby in Portland on Jan. 17, the Hurlimans believe they just may be the proud owners of a real champion. “It’s taken us 40 years to have a 3-year-old that looks outstanding,” said Rose with a chuckle. Maddie’s Gold, as they call him, finished the mile-long derby at Portland Meadows in 1 minute and 41.13 seconds. As a four-time winner, he bumped his winnings to more than $60,000. The odds generally aren’t favorable when it comes to having a champion horse, said George. “Ninety percent of horses won’t produce,” he said. And, “Once you win, it only gets tougher.” Last November, their Oregonbred horse captured the $15,000 Bill Wineberg Stakes. “That’s when we thought we might have something,” recalled George.
Courtesy photos
Maddie’s Gold races to victory in the Oregon Derby on Jan. 17. The 3-year-old thoroughbred belongs to Rose and George Hurliman of TIllamook, lower left, who have owned racehorses for the last 40 years.
He had won the $30,000 Osiris Stakes the previous August. The Hurlimans point to their champion’s breeding. Maddie’s Gold’s father, Harbor the Gold, is the leading sire in the Northwest, they said. His mother, Moonlit Maddie, is a champion turf runner, meaning she runs on grass courses. Moonlit Mad-
die has won a variety of races in Arizona, at Turf Paradise and Yavapai Downs. After they give him a rest, said the Hurlimans, they may see how Maddie’s Gold does on turf tracks. “Turf horses travel higher,” said George – they lift their hoofs higher off the ground. “My gut tells me he’s going to run turf just like his mother.” The couple has been raising the horse since he was a foal, with trainer Rolland Fergason. Maddie’s Gold is one of several racehorses they own, with three more foals on the way. The Hurlimans estimate they’ve owned more than 50 racehorses over the years. “Usually, they don’t make it to be
6 or 7 years old,” said George. “But if you pace them right, you can race them up until they’re 12.” Neither sees Maddie’s Gold giving up anytime soon. Which is good; the Hurlimans aren’t ready to give it up, either. Then again, “Maybe we’ll back down on the breeding,” Rose suggested. Her husband will be 80 years old by the time the newest foals are ready for the track, in two or three years. “It’s what’s keeping him young,” she admitted. What’s more, “It’s quite an honor to have a winning horse. It’s pretty good for little, ol’ Tillamook.”
3 take aim at county commissioner job By Joe Wrabek jwrabek@countrymedia.net
At the end of January, three candidates had filed for the Tillamook County Commissioner Position 3 election: incumbent Tim Josi of Bay City, Bill Spidal of Nehalem, and David Yamamoto of Pacific City. Candidates have until Mar. 11 to file, according to the county clerk’s office. Ballots will be mailed out May 2. Election Day – the date by which all ballots must be returned – is May 20. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes, a run-off election will be held in November, with the top two votegetters on the ballot. The candidate who receives a majority of the votes cast, either in the May election or the runoff election in November, will take office as one of Tillamook County’s three commissioners in January 2015. The Headlight Herald talked with each of the candidates who had filed. Future candidates will have that same opportunity. BILL SPIDAL William “Bill” Spidal is no stranger to local elections. He ran for county commissioner in 2002 and 2008, and for county sheriff in 2012.
Tim Josi
Bill Spidal
David Yamamoto
A former Portland police officer, he left the force following an auto accident in 1985 and founded Westco Investments, an international hedge fund he still owns. He moved to the Nehalem area in 1998. The county’s issues are the same as when he ran for sheriff, Spidal said. Domestic violence tops the list – “We have a crisis in Tillamook County,” he said. “I don’t know why we’re not doing more to address the issue.” Second is tsunami sirens: “We’re the only county on the West Coast with no tsunami sirens.” Clatsop and Lincoln counties sank money into upgrading sirens, Spidal said, “[but] we decommissioned them.” Spidal wants public safety to be a bigger priority in the county’s budget. “We don’t have 24/7 sheriff’s patrols,” he noted.
And he’d like to put a stop to the repeated elections involving bond issues, which he called “a neverending battle. The public doesn’t have the money” for repeated elections, said Spidal. If voters reject a bond issue, it shouldn’t reappear on the ballot for another four years. Spidal said he brings to the county commissioner job “a strong empathy for the public” as well as financial expertise. “Money management is what I do,” he emphasized. “There are a lot of areas where we can reduce expenses.” Often, he contended, the county commissioners don’t seem focused on those issues that concern local people. “It’s a matter of getting out there,” he said. “You have to go to [the public]” rather than expecting residents to come to you. “If people vote for my opponent, that’s democracy,” said Spidal. “But I won’t stop talking.” TIM JOSI Tim Josi was born in Tillamook County and has lived in Bay City for 35 years. A former state legislator, he’s been a Tillamook County commissioner for the past 16 years. “I don’t have a desire to return to the Legislature,” See ELECTION, Page A3